It didn't take long for the news of God Serena's defection and Ben's victory over him to spread across Ishgar. Ben didn't spread it at all, he only told some very important people who were asking him about it. But news like this will eventually spread and cause a storm.
People's attention is on Ben right now and he doesn't like it one bit. Even if people are praising him and say that he is now the strongest mage on Ishgar, he still hates the attention. He already had too much attention before, but now it had increased even more.
The Wizard Saints, especially the remaining three Gods of Ishgar are also bothering him. They want him to take God Serena's place as the 1st ranked Wizard Saint and become the new strongest mage on Ishgar. He refused though because it just means that he will have more work to do.
"Work? Ho ho ho, it seems you don't understand what it means to be the strongest God of Ishgar." Warrod said during the meeting involving all the Wizard Saints.
"I don't understand? Being the First Rank means that everyone will rely on me, right? It's just too much hassle." Ben replied in annoyance.
"It's true that everyone will rely on you, but that doesn't mean you need to do everything yourself. Have you ever seen God Serena work before?" Draculos asked.
"Not really. I've never seem him or the three of you work actually. Wait! Were you guys ditching your work and giving it to us instead?" Ben suspiciously asked.
"DON'T ACCUSE US LIKE THAT, YOUNG MAN! EVEN IF YOU ARE STRONGER THAN ALL OF US, WE ARE STILL YOUR ELDERS, SO SHOW SOME MANNERS! WE ALSO HAVE JOBS LIKE YOU!" Wolfheim angrily shouted while transforming into a beast.
Ben didn't have much of a reaction and just asked, "Really?"
"Yeah, although only 2 of us worked seriously. The one who died a few days ago never did his jobs, while the other one only cares about his plants." Draculos said, peeking at Warrod.
Warrod didn't listen and just kept caressing a flower in a pot that he brought here.
"So, what's your point?" Ben asked.
"The First Rank is actually the freest among all Wizard Saints. All 4 Gods of Ishgar will only move when we're really needed. Even then, the three of us will move before the First Rank. As the 1st rank, you will only move when we don't have another choice." Draculos explained.
"When you become the 1st rank, you will be our symbol of strength. That alone is plenty because your name by itself will make our enemies shiver. You who defeated the former 1st rank and 2 members of the Alvarez Empire's Spriggan 12 are a great force that will make anyone think twice before attacking Ishgar." Warrod added.
"Yeah, especially because unlike God Serena, you are a lot more active and often get involved in battles. They need to be ready to face you if they are going to make a big scene." Wolfheim continued.
Ben looked at the three old men before looking at the other Wizard Saints who haven't said anything in that meeting. They are strong people, but the presence of the three Gods of Ishgar and Ben are overwhelming them.
"I will accept on a few conditions. First, I don't want to be involved in official business that I have no interest in. Second, I will only move when I want to, no one can force me to. Third, the three of you need to manage the Magic Council. It's in disarray right now and I believe it needs to be handled by us, not just some officials and politicians who have never fought in real wars. Fourth, don't expect anything from me because I don't do things to meet your expectations." Ben said.
"I can accept all those conditions. The Magic Council really needs to be reformed after everything that happened the last few years. We also believe that only we can reform it completely, so we will handle it." Draculos replied.
"Me too, I also accept. God Serena's defection made me realize how powerless we are. It might be too late for us to gain power with our age. But we have many young mages with a lot of potential on Ishgar. So if we manage the Council well, we can make Ishgar stronger." Wolfheim added.
"I also accept because I was a member of Fairy Tail." Warrod continued.
The other Wizard Saints also agree. They can't refuse when three Gods of Ishgar have accepted the conditions. Besides, none of those conditions are a burden to them, so they can accept all of those. They also think that the Magic Council needs to be completely reformed.
With everyone's agreement, Ben finally became the First Rank, the official strongest mage on Ishgar. But their discussion wasn't over yet because Ben had something else to share with them. It's very rare for all of them to gather, so this is a good chance to talk to them.
"I'm sure you know that there are two sides that are a threat to us. The Alvarez Empire that is led by Zeref and Acnologia. I don't know when, but I'm sure the Alvarez Empire will attack Ishgar. They failed in the past, but I'm sure they will try again. We used Etherion in the past, but I'm sure they've prepared for it now. Even Jellal could stop it, so they must've found a way too." Ben noted.
"I agree, but Etherion will be helpful in case they attack Ishgar. Even if we can't destroy them, we can reduce their forces." Jura nodded.
"You are right, but the problem is Etherion has been neutralized now. Those that had the keys to activate it were killed when Tartaros attacked the Magic Council." Wolfheim pointed out.
"No problem. I can hack the system and make it operational again. Just give me full authority and you will be able to use Etherion soon." Ben stated.
Everyone was surprised when they heard that and Draculos asked, "You can reactivate Etherion?"
"Yeah, and the keys to activate it should be kept by Wizard Saints. The reason why Etherion could be neutralized very easily was because the keys were in the possession of people that could be killed easily." Ben informed them.
They agree with the statement, but were surprised that Ben can reactivate Etherion without the keys. Well, not everyone was completely surprised. Jura was surprised, but not dumbfounded like the others. He knew Ben's abilities better than anyone else here.
"Well, that's that, but what are our other plans to face Alvarez when they attack us? Even if God Serena failed to join them and one of them was killed by you, they still have 10 others at God Serena's level. They also still have Zeref and maybe there are still some hidden powerhouses in the Empire." Jura said.
"There's only one plan to face everything that will come to us. Prepare thoroughly." Ben told the others.
Everyone was stunned. "Huh?"
"It's exactly as I said, prepare thoroughly. Prepare yourselves, prepare your guilds, prepare your countries, prepare your allies, prepare your weapons, everything. Just be prepared. If you think your power is lacking, then become stronger. If your weapons are lacking, then buy more with better qualities. When we are prepared for everything, we won't have a problem facing it." He explained.
What Ben said was common sense, but somehow people tend to forget it. They are often too focused on other things that they forget about themselves.
"We need to become stronger even if it is just a little bit because it can make a big difference with the end results." Ben said.
Everyone finally understood Ben's point and they agree with it. They are now determined to improve themselves even a little because their enemies are not ordinary. They don't just want to rely on the strongest mage, they still have their pride as Wizard Saints which motivated them to become stronger.